He rolled away just in time to avoid Maxim embedding a blade into his jugular. Unfortunately, that gave Maxim time to get back up. Just then, Jillian reached the top. Maxim pounced on her and put her in a choke hold.
“I guess we both have something that belongs to the other,” Maxim drawled. Gavin positioned his body protectively in front of Sierra. “My mother always taught me to go for the weakest link. Guardians, useful in theory, frail and helpless in reality.”
Gavin feigned a left and went for Maxim’s right, confident he could disarm the bastard in a heartbeat, but Maxim didn’t hesitate. He plunged the dagger into Jillian’s collarbone. Blood oozed out of the wound. “Don’t do anything foolish, or the next cut will slit her throat.” Gavin froze. Maxim threw a lewd grin at Sierra. “Looks like you’ll have to tell me what you are after all, unless you want to see your friend die.”
Chapter 34
Sierra’s insides clenched. She couldn’t lose Jillian, couldn’t allow Maxim to hurt her. “I’m a Fluidus.” Sierra pushed past Gavin’s protective stance.
Maxim dabbed a finger against Jillian’s laceration. She whimpered. He rubbed the crimson liquid around, clearly enjoying the agony he inflicted. “Ah yes, of course. It all makes sense now, everyone’s fascination with little Sierra. The telekinesis. A Fluidus. Mother mentioned them once and how rare they are.” Maxim’s arms tightened around Jillian’s neck. “How about an exchange, the Fluidus for the Guardian?” Confidence emanated from him. In his mind, he had already won the fight.
“No, Gavin, don’t,” Jillian pleaded.
With Maxim and Gavin locked in a stare down, Sierra knew she had to act now. Her eyes darted around the room, searching for anything she could use. Trepidation whorled through her veins. What if she failed? No, she couldn’t allow herself to think like that. Trust, she had to trust her powers. She had already used her telekinesis against Maxim; she could do it again.
Her gaze settled on a microscope atop a table. She willed it to move, visualized it crashing into Maxim’s skull. No hesitation. No second-guessing. No doubts. This was bigger than her, bigger than Jillian. It was for all the humans Maxim had hurt and all the humans he would hurt in the future if Sierra didn’t stop him. She reached her power out to the microscope, connected to the object, aimed, and shot.
The microscope slammed against Maxim’s temple. His mouth opened, a scream tearing out of it. Blood oozed from his skull, a metallic smell spreading in the air. His body careened from the impact. His knees gave out, and he collapsed on the ground.
Sierra remained rooted in place, staring at his withering form. Gavin rushed to Jillian. She leaned against him. “He’s dead,” Gavin said, glancing down at Maxim’s body. Jillian cried silently, pressing her palm against her collarbone wound.
“I have bandages in the car, but it won’t be enough. You need a doctor.” Gavin fished out his cell. “Hi. Yes. No, it’s Jillian. I’ll be there in ten.” He hung up and heaved Jillian into his arms, who with each passing second resembled more and more a ragdoll.
Sierra followed behind. Her feet moved on autopilot as her mind processed the events of the last few hours. The nightmare was over. Maxim was dead. He couldn’t hurt her anymore. He couldn’t hurt anyone anymore.
“Don’t forget this.” Whitney handed Sierra her black cardigan. “And don’t forget about me.”
“I won’t,” Sierra promised, zipping her bag shut.
“I’ll miss you, but I’m glad you get to do your Europe trip.”
Sierra hugged Whitney. “Me too. That’s what gap years are for, right?”
“Absolutely. Do I get a hug?” Gio put his coffee cup down and opened his arms.
“Be good to her,” Sierra whispered into his ear as they embraced.
“I will. Have fun, enjoy London for me.”
Sierra nodded. It was odd how sunny and cloudless the morning was, as if yesterday’s storm and horrors had never happened. The doorbell rang. Words of goodbye were spoken. They felt surreal. Whitney and Gio waved from the porch as Sierra got into Jillian’s car.
“How are you feeling? Shouldn’t you be resting?” Dark half-moon circles sat below the Guardian’s eyes, and a thick bandage stretched around her shoulder.
Jillian gave her a ghost of a smile. “I’m fine. Ardere heal quickly, even Guardians. Besides, I couldn’t let you leave without seeing you in person.”
Sierra took Jillian’s hand, simultaneously giving and drawing strength from the touch. When the car rolled away, Sierra glanced one last time at the mint-colored Victorian house. This was the end of her Savannah chapter and the beginning of a new one. Despite all the supernatural occurrences, she knew she had only glimpsed the supernatural world; whatever awaited her in London would be on a completely different level.
Instead of fear, she felt excitement blooming in her chest. Dad, Gran, and Jeff had given their lives to protect her, and she was determined to do them proud. “Let’s do this.”
The residential street gave way to the city center, and then they were on the highway. “Ask,” Jillian prompted. “I know you have questions. It’s better to talk about Maxim, then bottling up your feelings and pretending things didn’t happen.”
Sierra bit her lip. Was she really that obvious? “Okay.” Where to begin? Even with Maxim’s confession, so many things didn’t make sense. “If Maxim’s goal was to become a supernatural, why kill humans?” He had held his victim’s in low regard, yet certainly that couldn’t justify murdering them.
“Maxim’s Umbra genes were dormant. His mother wanted a better life for him, so she tried activating his genes using Ardere blood. They decided to use Finn’s. Probably because he was a Guardian.”
“An easy target.” Sierra remembered how quickly Maxim had overpowered Jillian.
“Yes, but they must’ve underestimated Finn. He was worried that someone was following him, so he had carried a weapon on him, mortally wounding Maxim’s mother. Maxim preserved both Finn and Joanna’s blood. He used Finn’s blood first. When that didn’t work, he switched to his mother’s blood. She was an Umbra and a match.”
“And the injections made him unstable enough to kill?”
“Combined with the loss of his mother, yes. That’s why Maxim picked women who had a bad relationship with their parents, especially their mothers. He had lost his mother, and he perceived these girls as ungrateful.”
“Did Whitney get away because he used Finn’s blood?”
Jillian shifted in her seat, her expression grave. “As insane as Maxim was, he was also strategic. He wanted to practice his Charmer powers on his victim’s. Since he had used Finn’s blood on Whitney, which wasn’t a match, Maxim wasn’t successful. That must’ve taken him by surprise. Whitney got lucky we arrived in time. After realizing the mind manipulation didn’t work on her, Maxim was prepared to kill her.” Jillian swallowed, and her knuckles turned white on the wheel. “Maxim used mind manipulation on all his victim’s. We think, when he killed Amelia, he injected himself with a small, trial dose of Joanna’s blood, and then with Kirsten, he was juiced up on Joanna’s blood.”
“The transformation worked and gave him the guts to go for me.” A shiver racked Sierra’s body as she remembered the nightmare illusion Maxim had put her through, his hand connecting with her cheek, his nails breaking her skin, the shoving, the pulling…She hugged herself.
Jillian put her palm on Sierra’s arm. “I wish we could’ve caught Maxim earlier and spared you going through…all of it. I should’ve realized something was up. He always wanted to hang out with Ardere, and he was the only human who didn’t show aversion to Jeff.”
“You did your best. And it was I who went right into his trap.” Sierra rubbed her wrists. They still felt sore from the shackles. “Did his body disintegrate?”
“Yes, the blood symbiosis was successful, and Maxim’s body has already disintegrated.”
“What about the families of Maxim’s victims?”
Jillian gave Sierra a sad s
mile. “There’s nothing we can tell them. Humans can never find out about our existence. Maxim was another reminder why we need to stay hidden.”
Sierra nodded. The lengths Maxim had gone to acquire supernatural powers were horrifying. But the saddest part was, he wasn’t an exception or a rare case. Sierra could imagine other humans would become interested in harnessing supernaturals’ powers. Perhaps even study them like rats in a laboratory. Precaution was necessary, yet she still wished closure could be provided to the relatives of the victims.
“The police notified the affected families. This will be an unsolved case.”
“Aren’t you worried an innocent will go to jail for Maxim’s crimes?”
Jillian shook her head. “No, it’ll be another unsolved mystery. A percentage of them are caused by supernaturals.”
“So, we do nothing?”
“We already did what we had to. You eliminated the danger from Savannah. You should be proud of yourself.”
“I wish there would have been another way,” Sierra replied, wondering if Maxim’s face would haunt her dreams.
“You did the right thing. Now it’s time for you to master your skills so you can do even greater good.” Jillian clutched Sierra’s hand, and her voice became a whisper. “No matter how advanced you become, you won’t be able to save everyone.”
The trueness of Jillian’s words sliced through Sierra. She wasn’t sure she could bear to watch anyone else die because she wasn’t fast enough.
“About the test Maxim was running on your blood,” Jillian began.
Sierra twisted and untwisted her hair strand. “He said it was to figure out what I was.”
“Yes, but he ran a second test on whether your blood would be compatible with his.” Sierra sucked in a breath. “Gavin and I destroyed the results without looking at them. No one will ever find out if a halfling can use Fluidus’s blood. This type of information is too dangerous.”
Sierra’s body slackened, yet she knew that, even without this knowledge, Umbra and certain Ardere would try to use her, viewing her as nothing more than a weapon.
Jillian turned into the airport parking lot, and the reality of leaving Savannah hit Sierra all over again.
“I’ll miss you and Whitney. Maybe even Gio.” Sierra chewed the inside of her cheek. “Will you keep an eye on the lovebirds for me?”
“Of course, I’ll keep you posted, and I expect updates from you.”
“I’ll stay in touch.” Sierra looked out the window, wondering if Whitney and Gio could work out long term. “Do you think they stand a chance?”
Jillian shrugged. “Only time will tell.” She tilted her head and asked softly, “Will you give Gavin a chance?”
Sierra inhaled sharply, the question unbalancing her. If anyone else had asked, she wouldn’t have answered, but Jillian wasn’t anyone. Jillian was her friend. “You can’t start a relationship with someone who doesn’t want to be with you.”
For a moment, Jillian didn’t say anything. “I know Gavin can be complicated, but underneath all his toughness, he’s a really good guy. Since I’ve been here, I’ve never seen him show interest in anyone until you showed up.”
Sierra felt too raw to confess about the redhead and her suspicions that she was waiting in London for Gavin. Desperate for a topic switch, she asked, “How long do you think we’ll stay in London?”
“Until you both fulfill what you came to do.”
Sierra nodded. She knew what her goal was—learn to control her Fluidus powers, so she would never again be defenseless. And she hoped to track down information about her mother’s life and her father’s death. As scary as the findings might be, she had to make her peace with them before she could build a future.
Jillian popped the trunk. “I’m afraid we have to go. We don’t want you to miss your flight.”
Concerns Sierra didn’t know she had flooded her mind. Like, what if she wouldn’t be able to control her powers? What would Lorna and her elite think of her? What if they hated her? What if she hated them?
Jillian must’ve noticed the worry radiating from her. She touched Sierra’s arm. “You’ll be fine. London will be different from what you know, but I’m sure you’ll adapt quickly. And not everyone will be prim and proper. You met Cooper, right? He should be there too. If you ever need to get away from an afternoon tea, he’s your man.”
Sierra giggled, unable to imagine Cooper with his cowboy hat and boots drinking out of a tiny china cup.
In front of the departure entry, Jillian hugged Sierra tightly. “This is where I say goodbye. Gavin will be waiting inside.” Sierra’s chest constricted and tears swelled in her eyes. She would miss her friends and Savannah so much. “Thank you for everything. Take care, Jillian.”
“You too, Sierra.”
Chapter 35
She’s safe. She’s alive, were Gavin’s thoughts as Sierra walked into the airport. Not trusting his voice or the words that might come out of his mouth, he just nodded at her. Careful not to touch her fingers, he took her suitcase and put it on the baggage conveyor belt, checking them both in. When she stood in front of him at the security line, his gaze roamed over her. On the outside, she seemed fine. But what about on the inside? He wanted to offer words of consolation, apologize for the terror she had to endure at Maxim’s hands, yet Gavin couldn’t bring himself to do so.
Once again, because of him, someone he cared about had been in peril. The sentiment locked in place his decision to let Sierra go. She would be better off without him, especially long term. After his mission, he would return home to Savannah. If they were together, she might be tempted to follow him. He didn’t want that for her. She had so much potential, and now was the time for her to explore her options. With the training provided by Lorna, Sierra could do anything, go anywhere. She had a bright future, one he didn’t want to mess up. Him trying to be with her would be selfish. He would be a constant reminder of her grandmother’s death, of her sorrowful past. No, it was better for her to leave all of that behind and move into a carefree, happy future—one that couldn’t include him.
And he had to focus on his mission. He couldn’t risk losing Lorna’s allegiance or upsetting her. If he did, Louis would be only too willing to rip his claws into Gavin, until nothing was left.
Thus, he mentally said goodbye to Sierra, knowing he would never again run his fingers through her silky hair, touch her smooth skin, or taste her plump lips. He would keep his distance, watch her from the sidelines, and only interact with her when the lapis pendant told him she was in jeopardy. That’s what Waldeburg would’ve wanted.
When they reached their gate, he extracted the folded piece of paper he had written earlier and handed it to Sierra.
Sierra stared at the names and contact details. It was a list of British Guardians who dealt with trauma survivors and specialized in PTSD. After everything they’d been through together, Gavin still perceived her as a problem, as something to be fixed, a mission—that’s all she was to him. She bet he couldn’t wait to arrive on British soil and pass her into the care of someone else.
She crumbled up the piece of paper and threw it into a trashcan. The heat of Gavin’s gaze was tangible against her skin, yet she remained staring straight ahead, refusing to show him the disappointment she was certain shone in her eyes.
“I’m sorry if I upset you.”
She turned sharply, feeling her nostrils flare. “Is apologizing your new thing? Did a Guardian advise you to do it more often?”
Gavin’s lips thinned, and his jaw worked. Not waiting for his reply, Sierra turned on her heel and stormed away.
He followed her. “My apology is genuine. I wish I’d handled myself better. If I had prevented you from getting tangled up with Maxim, yesterday could’ve been avoided.”
Adrenaline rushed through her veins. Every muscle in her face felt tight. “Really? So let me get this straight, you think the problem was that you didn’t baby me enough?” She shook her head. “I’m a perso
n, Gavin, not a doll that you need to protect from breaking.”
He opened his mouth and then closed it again. “I’ll grab us some water.”
Clearly, he was done with the conversation. Too bad she wasn’t. No more letting others push her around. She had delivered the final blow to Maxim, transforming her from a scared girl into a fighter, and now she would stand up for herself in other aspects of her life.
“Why did you kiss me?” she demanded in front of the cashier, not caring who heard the conversation.
Gavin didn’t move or flinch; his face remained motionless, only the bobbing of his Adam’s apple betrayed him. Taking the bottles in one hand and her arm in the other, he steered them toward an empty area. “I should’ve never kissed you. It was my fault, and I take full responsibility. It was a mistake. It won’t happen again.”
The assurance drifted so easily from his lips. It felt like acid burning her skin away, exposing her aching soul. Somehow, Sierra still found the strength to go on. “You didn’t answer my question.”
Gavin huffed, shoving his hand through his hair. “I got caught up in the moment. I wasn’t thinking.” He shook his head. “It was just a kiss, Sierra. You need to let it go. I don’t recall you showing this much trepidation when you locked lips with a customer at work, who turned out to be a murderer.”
She couldn’t believe she was hearing right. How did he have the nerve to compare the two?
“And yesterday, why did you go to Maxim’s house? If you cared this much about our kiss, why did you go?” Gavin’s eyes narrowed, his whole body practically humming with…with what? Jealousy? Could it really be jealousy?
No, impossible. The image of the perfect redhead swam in front of Sierra’s mental eye. She could never live up to that. A dull ache proliferated in her chest, one she didn’t feel entitled to. How could she mourn the end of something that hadn’t properly begun?
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